Minnesota Wild Award Candidates 2026-27

The NHL regular season is still over a month away, but the summer is winding down fast, and it’ll be here before we know it. Of course, with every NHL season, there are always award winners after the season is all said and done. Although the season hasn’t even started yet, it’s not too early to take a look at who the Minnesota Wild’s award candidates will be for this season. 

They have a lot of talented players, and while they did have one player, Marcus Foligno, who won the King Clancy Memorial Trophy last season, and general manager Bill Guerin won the Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year Award, they may have more this coming season. In this article, we’ll look at those players, starting with a player who has been snubbed before. 

Joel Eriksson Ek

This name may be somewhat of a surprise to some or considered wishful thinking to others, but Joel Eriksson Ek will hopefully be considered for the coveted Frank J. Selke Trophy, which is awarded to the forward who showcases the best defensive skills. This award basically defines Eriksson Ek’s game style, but he has yet to win the award, mainly because he doesn’t have nearly as much offensive flair as his opponents. 

While the award is meant to focus on defense, it is awarded to a forward, and that player usually accumulates quite a few points as well, which has left Eriksson Ek out of the winner’s spot. Does he need to find a way to earn more points to receive the award? Maybe, but he does still do what is asked in the definition of the award. 

Despite all of his injuries, his game never changes; he continues to be bothersome in front of the net but also doesn’t back down from his defensive game. It’s safe to say his game will continue on the same path, but hopefully, if he can stay healthy, he can push his game a bit more and earn some recognition for his play along with a Selke nomination. 

Quinn Hughes

After seeing what Quinn Hughes can do on the ice, it’s no surprise he’s already won the James Norris Memorial Trophy once in his career, as he was determined to be the best all-around defenseman that season. While it’s been a few seasons since he won that award, his game hasn’t dwindled; in fact, it’s continued to get better, although his point totals haven’t been as high since. 

However, just because he hasn’t provided as much offense, that doesn’t mean his defensive game suffered; in fact, it’s the opposite. His blocked shots jumped by nearly 20 blocks each season, as did his time on ice, despite playing fewer games each season as well due to injuries. Making a change turned out to be quite good for Hughes, and now that he’s had time to fully adapt, his stats can only get better. 

That’s the main reason he’s on the list of possible award winners for the Wild, as he’ll likely be a Norris nominee following this season. With Brock Faber as his partner and the other players around him like Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy, he has a solid crew around him to help him reach that new high that will get him nominated once again.

Kirill Kaprizov/Matt Boldy

Hughes may be the only for-sure nominee on this list, but that doesn’t mean the other three aren’t worthy of mentioning. Kaprizov and Boldy are listed together because they both have the chance to win the same award; they are consistently one right after the other, and it’ll likely be the same throughout this coming season. 

Some may think being a nominee for the Hart Memorial Trophy, which is given to the “most valuable player to his team,” is too high of an achievement for these two players; Kaprizov has been on an impressive pace before only to be sidelined by injuries, and that’s what stands between him and having a truly remarkable season. If he can find a way to stay healthy and start off the way he has in the past, he has the chance to be a nominee for the Hart. 

On the other hand, it may be the season that Boldy finally surpasses Kaprizov for the top of the Wild’s stat sheet, hopefully without a major injury involved. The only season that Boldy has come out on top was when Kaprizov missed half the season due to injuries and surgery; not that it wasn’t deserved, but it wasn’t a head-to-head battle as it has been before. 

Boldy has a true talent for scoring, and he was right behind Kaprizov this past season and nearly got ahead of him multiple times. They each play a different style of game, but it ends with them each finding ways to put up points. If Boldy finds a way past Kaprizov, he may find himself a nominee for the Hart, depending on how many points he can tally. 

It’s always fun for fans to think of players from their team winning awards outside of the Stanley Cup, but these awards are hard to win as well. Obviously, when reading through the Wild’s possible award nominees, Hughes comes up as the one with the biggest chance to be nominated and possibly win. The others are talented enough to be up for an award, but they have a lot of strong competition. Overall, hopefully these players can help their team have a successful season, and the awards will follow after.